SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG! Crazy family emergencies have been popping up one after another! My son was attacked by a dog so we have been dealing with surgeries at the moment but I finally found a free day to type this up! Please REVIEW! Thank you for being so patient! Sorry if there are a million typos! I will have to go back and re-edit but I wanted to get this out ASAP!

Chise could feel the vibration from the Thorn Mage's animalistic growl that reverberated deep within his throat.

Oberon huffed, unperturbed at the warning tone from the half-man-half-beast in front of him, "Oh Thorn, you are overreacting! I thought you might want to take a look–"

When Chise saw the satyr produce the torn sketch, she reacted on impulse and grabbed the page from his hand, "NO!"

Jerked from his previous state of rage, Elias became speechless when he saw a tear run down the red-head's cheek. Chise shook her head as she pressed the paper to her chest, right over her heart. If she ever were to confront Elias about her feelings towards him, she would never let it happen in this way. Were the Fae so selfish that they would potentially risk a fragile relationship just to play games? Who was she kidding? Of course they would! Oberon and Titania would not dwell on a broken heart. In that moment, the sleigh beggy lowered the drawing and gazed at it for one brief moment before crushing the page into a ball and throwing it to the ground. Her eyes darted towards the Queen and King and all thoughts of formalities left her.

"How could you?" she whispered just loud enough for all to hear.

Titania frowned, obviously not expecting this reaction, "Dear-"

"No," Chise interrupted while her voice started to break with bubbling emotions that she was fighting to hold in, "Both of you knew exactly what you were doing when you came here."

Elias found his opportunity to speak up, "Chise, be careful what you say to them-"

He stopped abruptly when his apprentice met his eyes with anger and also regret, "I am so sorry, Elias."

Before she had even taken a step backwards, Elias knew that she would run. His first instinct was to follow her but he had finally come to realize a few things about his ward… one of which was that the girl needed time to recoup and needed space to gather herself together. Looking back on the real reason why she felt the need to escape was that Chise wanted to keep something private. He could definitely relate. However much she wished and begged him to open up to her, he still held many things back. It wasn't improbable that Chise probably realized this too. Elias had tried to be better about sharing more of himself when she returned home after the unbearable situation with Cartaphilus, but he couldn't bring himself to extend very far past all of the walls he had built around him.

Ruth started after Chise, "I'll go find her."

"No need," Elias stopped him, "It would be better if you returned home to Silver Lady and helped her prepare for Chise's arrival. Also," he offered the charcoal and leaflets to Ruth, "take this with you."

The familiar didn't need to question what the Mage's actions would be. Turning to his human form, the grim gingerly took the parcel of supplies. Ruth knew Elias would bring her home safely and so he turned in the opposite direction that Chise had fled and made the journey back towards the house.

"Elias-" Titania started but faltered when she saw the Thorn Mage raise his hand in protest.

Oberon wasn't going to listen to the man, "Our little bird is a strange girl… and here we came all this way to help her. Well at least all hope is not lost… she did leave the drawing here. Perhaps she left it for you, Thorn." He pointed to the forest floor.

"I've heard enough," the Mage sighed while picking up the dirty, crumpled drawing and did not even bother to open it back up, "I've only seen Chise react this way once before and it was for a good reason. She will have to explain this situation to me herself. I do not need to listen to fae who clearly have their own selfish goals in mind."

Spriggan gave a snarling growl, "No one speaks to-"

Without hesitation, Elias whipped out his cane-like wand and shoved it between the eyes of the little fae, "I suggest you step aside."

Titania intervened before the little fae could say anything, "Spriggan let him go."

Once Chise had found the enormous tree she was looking for, she took refuge in it's embracing roots and let silent tears fall. All she could focus on was the anger and frustration she felt inside her. The red head was upset with no one except herself.

"It would have been wise to listen to Ruth while I still had the chance," she thought.

It was going to be mortifying to return home where Elias would inevitably be waiting for her once he found out the truth from Oberon and Titania. What would he think of her when he learned of her feelings for him? Would the Faery King and Queen even explain her emotions? Or did they just see it on a physical level because of the sketch? Sinking even further into her despair, Chise wondered if Elias would grasp that she loved him or if he only believed that she desired him. It was embarrassing either way she imagined it. She never thought about the intimate side of what a romantic relationship would entail since she tried to not even entertain the possibility of having such an interaction. The apprentice played the scene over and over in her mind of how Elias would greet her when she arrived at the house. It was depressing. For someone who only saw things logically and not with his heart or feelings mixed in, he must think she was truly a fool.

"Chise?" a warm, deep voice reverberated off the trees.

The Thorn mage saw his pupil cuddled up to the base of a yew tree and he sighed. She looked so ashamed of herself. She really must have wanted to keep her love interest a secret from him. He understood why since she had had first-hand experience of his jealousy issues. He had vowed from that moment so long ago to never let such feelings ever resurface to that degree. Though, to his defense, it was the first time he had ever felt jealousy when Stella came to visit Chise. He was much more attuned to the shifts in his mannerisms now.

Chise felt Elias' presence near her and caught a glimpse of him crouching down just on the other side of the root she was leaning against. When he found a suitable seated position, she realized that he was so close that she could feel the warmth of his body heat and yet, it was still too painful for her to get a good look at him. After what felt like an eternity of awkward silence, Elias sighed and did something completely unexpected.

"Not to be too presumptuous, but I think I recognize the emotions that you are feeling: embarrassment and shame. I cannot, for certain, say that I experienced the exact emotions you are harboring right now, yet I see so many similarities…" Elias commented in such a way that he could have been talking about the weather. Chise actually turned towards him to make sure that she really was sitting next to the Thorn Mage, the infamous Pilum Muralis. Was he actually about to share something personal with her?

Waiting until he saw a sliver of his apprentice's emerald eyes that let him know she was listening closely, he continued, "After I had left Lindel and began to venture out on my own, I had met a young girl, around Stella's age, who lived in a nearby village. She seemed frightened of my appearance, at first, but soon her curiosity got the better of her. I was unsure why such a meddlesome child would take interest in me for an extended period of time. It was an innocence that I had never known before."

Elias lifted his head towards the sky in contemplation, "I still had a hard time preparing meals for myself so she would bring me food each day. She would sing little songs to me and had even convinced me that I looked rather dashing with a crown of flowers atop my head and horns. I used to let her weave the flowers for me on every visit. It didn't take long before this little girl assured me that I was her best friend. When she grew to a young adult, she had me enter the village marketplace where she confessed her undying love for me to the whole town. Luckily I did not know what love was but I did know what disgust and scorn looked like."

"It wasn't until then that I found out that it was indeed Ashen Eyes that had cast a spell over an old hag, disguised her as a beautiful young girl to my eyes only and had her dress me up in flowers for his own sick enjoyment. I am grateful that I at least knew much less about human emotions back then or I might have had a more intense reaction."

When he finished, Elias saw Chise with a sad, appreciative smile on her face, "Why did you choose to share something like this with me now?"

Elias met her gaze, "Two years ago, I recall you finding out many things about me that I never wished for you to know. In return, you told me something extremely personal about yourself. I thought perhaps I should share something I have always kept hidden away since it was obvious you did not want me to learn of your sketching in your journal and the ever-elusive love interest that Oberon was able discover."

He reached into his robe and retrieved the wrinkled ball of paper and held it out for Chise to take. She was stunned. He hadn't opened it up to look at it! A small spark of hope started to swell in her chest as she gingerly accepted the crinkled page. Elias patted his lap in a silent gesture, too afraid to ask for her touch verbally. All too eagerly, Chise scaled the root that separated them and climbed into her teacher's warm embrace.

"Thank you Elias."

He grabbed her chin and pulled it up towards him, "I want to know more about this newfound talent you have with figure drawing and I someday would appreciate you explaining the other situation to me."

The red-head nodded soberly and then asked, "Did Oberon not tell you anything after I left?"

Elias groaned at the thought of the Faery King, "He wanted to, but I told them I would wait until you were ready to reach out to me."

"This is so unlike you, Elias." Chise could hardly believe what she was hearing.

The mood turned somber and Elias looked more serious than she could ever remember. He pronounced his words slowly and deliberately, "I lost you once. I can not lose you again."

She laid her head on Elias' chest, "I could never leave you."

Chise felt Elias exhale in defeat, a sign showing that he did not believe her and yet, he covered it up, "I know you wouldn't. Chise?"

She hummed back at him and he continued his thoughts, "Would you mind if we stayed here for a little while longer? I don't want to feel cold– no… I don't want to feel lonely again…"

Smiling at the Mage, Chise nuzzled him around his snout, "Hey Elias? Could we maybe play a little game?"

"Game?" he countered, taken by surprise.

"Kids in my school used to play something similar... We ask each other a simple question and we have to guess what the other will answer." she explained, "I'll ask the first question and I will guess your answer and you must guess mine. What is your favorite meal of the day? Breakfast, lunch, or dinner?"

Elias pondered thoughtfully and Chise thought he looked exquisite, "Yours would be lunch. That's when you eat the most."

Laughing but also embarassed, Chise asked, "You pay that close attention to the amount I eat?!" she shook her head with amusement and then guessed Elias' answer, "You prefer dinner."

He cocked his head, "How did you figure that one out?"

The apprentice traced the seams on her teacher's white leather gloves, "You are not a morning person and Silver always has to demand your attendance at the table during lunch when you would rather be working. Besides, you always seem happiest in the evenings when you have completed the tasks for the day."

Elias had to give her credit for her keen eye. He realized it was his turn to ask a question, "Would you rather travel by land or air?"

"Hmm…" Chise weighed the options, thinking about the Mage's answer, "Land? We always seem to travel on land together."

There was a hint of amusement in his tone, "You're right. Now for you, my first instinct would be that you enjoy traveling by air considering your wild trip across the sky from Iceland… but I have a feeling you prefer land as well."

A smile and blush crept up on Chise before she realized how hot her face was really becoming, "Yes… I enjoy it because I get to spend more time with you." she shook herself and quickly changed the subject, "Next question! Do you prefer being male or female when you are in your human glamour?"

He didn't know how to respond to that besides saying, "Is that a real question?"

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